What are some good psoas muscle treatments?

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Yoga poses, lunges and specific stretching exercises can help alleviate psoas tension, according to Jill Hudgins for Runner's World. Osteopathic manipulative treatment can improve psoas problems, explains Tufo, Desai and Cox in the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association.

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Osteopathic treatment for psoas symptoms may include the osteopathic manipulative treatment of muscle energy technique, notes Tufo et al. Patients contract their muscles against the osteopath's resistance in muscle energy technique, states Selkow et al. for the Journal of Manual & Manipulative Therapy.

Regular in-home stretching can address some psoas symptoms, says Hudgins. The Thomas stretch is a seated exercise in which a patient sits on the edge of a table with his thighs halfway off and pulls one knee to his chest, leaning backward while the other leg hangs freely. Lunges performed in a kneeling position and the warrior yoga pose may also ease psoas pain.

For mild psoas muscle tension or stiffness, Hudgins recommends resting the injury and avoiding potentially exacerbating activities such as running up hills. The psoas muscle resides underneath abdominal muscles and connects the lower body and torso. The muscle runs from the lower spine to the end of the femur, splitting in two at the hips to travel down each leg, explains Runner's World. When the psoas muscle is tight or injured, a patient may experience pain when he lifts his knees, such as with climbing stairs or hills, or reduced range of motion in the hips and lower back.